1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to packaging and mounting of magnetic recording tape whereby a single relatively short recording may be played back on a conventional eight-track tape machine. More particularly, the present invention relates to a two-piece eight-track tape cartridge assembly which includes a miniature tape cartridge element containing a short selection of recorded material and a tape cartridge adaptor unit which allows the cartridge element to be used with conventional eight-track cartridgetype tape machines.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Tape cartridges on which musical and/or spoken selections are recorded for playback on car and/or home entertainment systems are well known. An example of one of the more common types of cartridges is the conventional eight-track cartridge having an endless loop of magnetic recording tape disposed therein. The eight-track cartridge has eight recording tracks and, in a stereo recording, two recording tracks are recorded and/or played back simultaneously.
The endless loop of magnetic tape is normally provided with a signalling element comprising a short length of metal foil. The metal foil is employed to signal the eight-track machine that the end of the recording track has been reached. The tape machine employs circuitry to sense the metal foil and automatically switch the head from one pair of recording tracks to the adjacent pair of recording tracks. A pair of recording tracks provides a program so that there are four programs on a conventional eight-track tape. These programs are automatically played sequentially by the machine. Conventional eight-track tape machines also employ circuitry to permit manual program selection.
The common practice of the musical tape recording industry is to produce eight-track cartridges having a number of selections in each program. For example, a single cartridge will generally have at least ten or more musical selections. Thus, each program may have two or more selections.
Those familiar with eight-track cartridge tapes know that they are easy to use since they do not require any threading. They also have disadvantages such as poor access to a desired selection. Many times, a cartridge tape may have from thirty to ninety minutes of recorded programming, and each recording track may be from 71/2 minutes to 221/2 minutes in length. If a person wants to hear only a particular selection from a program, it may be necessary to first listen to as much as 7 to 20 minutes or more of undesired programming.
One solution that many of the more expensive eight-track tape machines have provided is a "fast forward" capability which moves the tape at a faster rate; for example, twice the normal recorded rate. While providing a solution to the problem of access, the "fast forward" feature is expensive and does not entirely eliminate the problem.
Another disadvantage of the conventional eighttrack cartridge is that in many instances, there may be only one or two selections out of the ten or more on a particular cartridge which are desired. The large number of selections present on conventional cartridges makes them both expensive and bulky.